May 19, 2006 - Found Friday

Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

May 19, 2006 - Found Friday

I've been accumulating a number of interesting found objects while walking my dog, Una, in my neighborhood. Starting today, unless there's something else pressing to write about, I'll share something every Friday.

We start with a page I found near one of the local elementary schools. It's a page torn from a blue book and is apparently part of a midterm exam, where students were supposed to write about themselves. A teacher has written only one comment, suggesting adding a phrase to one section.

Strangely, despite numerous errors, which remain uncorrected, the teacher gave the student a grade of 20 points out of 20, or 100 percent. (begin cranky old lady voice) In my day, we actually had to write well to get a 100 percent on a writing assignment. (end cranky old lady voice) Oddly enough, the student may have been subliminally aware of the quality of the essay, as someone drew, in pencil, a block letter "F" on the top of the first page.

Maybe I'm just misunderstanding the purpose of the assignment. Maybe it wasn't really a writing assignment after all, but just a way to fill up paper. Maybe the teacher has holes in her attic walls and wanted her students to fill lots of blue books so she could plug them with something she wouldn't have to buy (teacher's salaries being dreadful). I can only assume this page flew out the window of her hatchback as she putted away with boxes full of scrap paper.